Russian police accused of framing drugs suspects

3 July 2012 Last updated at 21:51 ET By Oleg Boldyrev BBC Russian

Russian anti-narcotic officials say that more than 40,000 convictions for drug-related crimes in 2011 show their success in the war on drugs. But human rights activists accuse the police of mass fabrications.

Elena Kuznetsova witnessed the last minutes of her son Roman's liberty. He went from their flat downstairs to meet someone who owed him money for a recently sold scooter.

From a window of their flat, Mrs Kuznetsova saw her son suddenly being manhandled into an unmarked car parked nearby. She managed to run downstairs and followed the car. It took her son to a branch of the Federal Drug Control Service (FSKN) in Khimki, a suburb just outside Moscow.

There, Roman Kuznetsov's bag was taken away from him. An hour later, during the official search, inside the bag were found 18 small packets of hashish hidden in a cigarette pack.

I'd say up to 80% of cases relating to the possession of lighter drugs like cannabis are not real

An investigation followed. It did not find her son's fingerprints on the drugs. Experts failed to establish whether separate packets of hash were part of the same batch of drugs.

Defence requests for additional tests were rejected.

"My son was denied the right to present proof of his innocence", Mrs Kuznetsova said.

Nine months later Mr Kuznetsov was found guilty of intention to sell the drugs. He was sentenced to six years in jail.

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Russian police accused of framing drugs suspects